Friday, April 15, 2011

Through E-mails, Tweets and telephone calls, I have been in receipt of strong words of criticism regarding my article on Shri Narendra Modi, the Chief Minister of Gujarat, which was uploaded in my blog on April 15,2011, and which was simultaneously carried by rediff-com and the South Asia Analysis Group (SAAG).

2. Some of the criticisms have been very personal and hurting. One senior journalist, working for a left of centre daily, has called me amazingly naive. I have an impression ( I hope it is wrong and a figment of my imagination) that some people who were very close to my mind and heart and whose friendship I valued more than anything else in life have suddenly grown cold to me and have started marking a distance from me as if I have committed the mother of all sins by endorsing Modi's development model and by criticising some so-called secular elements who are trying to keep him quarantined in his past and prevent him from playing his due role in the present and in future. I have even been snubbed by some of them.

3.Some critics have been seriously worried by my call for the assertion of Youth Power in support of Narendra Modi. I have been accused of playing with fire and encouraging irrationality by writing such an article and by voicing such views.

4. Frankly, I have been surprised by the negative reactions against me expressed by some secular elements whose opposition to Modi is well-known. I have been writing about Modi off and on since 2003. I wrote in detail on the issue of the cancellation of the visa issued to him by the US. I wrote why he is so popular in the Hindu community. I also strongly criticised his ideas relating to counter-terrorism and wrote positively of the record of the Congress (I) in counter-terrorism.

5. I have been a strong critic of Modi the Hindutva ideologue and a strong supporter of Modi, the administrator.I have never hesitated to use very strong language to criticise his ideological demagogery. I have never hesitated to use very positive language to support his achievements in the field of development of Gujarat.

6. It has been my view that one must encourage his transformation from a demagogic ideologue to a benign politician and administrator and that he should be given an opportunity to play his role for the development of not only Gujarat, but also India as a whole.

7. It was this view which found strong expression in my latest article on him which appered on April 15. I have been taken aback by the kind of negative reactions it has evoked among some sections of the so-called secularists. I respect the views of my critics and have carefully thought over them the whole of last night when I did not and could not sleep.

8. I have come to the conclusion that there is no reason why I should have any second-thoughts on my wisdom in writing the article. I stand by whatever I wrote in that article.

9. If, as a result, I become the bete noire of some sections of the so-called secularists, so be it.

10.If I become persona non grata in the world of the Indian media, so be it.

The storm in the tea cup raised by some so-called secular elements over the praise by Anna Hazare, the social activist, of the rural development achievements of Shri Narendra Modi, their whipping-boy, in his State of Gujarat underlines once again the determination of these elements to keep Modi quarantined in his past and not to take cognizance of his achievements in ushering in an era of prosperity and development in Gujarat. All sections of the population of the State---whatever be their religion or language--- have benefited from the efficient, corruption-free and people-friendly administration given by him to the State for the last three or four years.

2. The results achieved by him comparable to the results achieved in Western China---but not yet in coastal China--- demonstrate that we can catch up with China earlier than anticipated if only we had leaders with the kind of motivation, determination and vision that Modi has shown in developing his State.

3. Unfortunately, the so-called secular elements would rather keep Gujarat and the rest of the country backward and lagging behind China than acknowledge the record of Modi and let his Gujarat model of development become an Indian model.

4. The so-called secular elements that have taken up sword against Modi have only one objective---- keep him quarantined in his past and stop him from playing any role at the national level even if such a role would be of benefit to the country. The venom and hatred, which these elements keep spreading against him, are because of his strong Hindutva ideology, which is anathema to them, and his perceived sins of commission and omission during the horrendous acts of violence against our Muslim co-citizens in the aftermath of the massacre of a number of Hindu pilgrims by some Muslims at the Godhra railway station in Gujarat in the beginning of 2002.

5.There has been a perception---not unjustified---that Modi did not, in the initial stages, deal with the explosive situation vigorously in order to protect the members of the Muslim community from brutal and beastly reprisal attacks by the Hindus. The fact that the Police subsequently took vigorous action to protect the Muslims ---as evidenced by the large number of Hindus killed in police-firing--- would not mitigate from the fact that in the initial hours after the news of the Godhra massacre spread across the State, the administration dragged its feet in protecting the Muslims, thereby wittingly or unwittingly giving a free run to frenzied Hindu mobs. It was a horrible episode of which all of us have to be ashamed.

6. After the frenzy of the initial hours, the State Administration did move in vigorously to bring the situation under control. The fact that no effective action was taken in the initial hours has left a scar in the minds and hearts of Muslims. This scar is likely to take a long time to heal. The cases registered in connection with the brutal attacks on the Muslim community are under investigation or prosecution. The investigation made so far has not produced any evidence of complicity by Modi.

7. Under these circumstances, the right thing would have been to let the law take its own course in the cases registered and proposed to be registered and let Modi continue on the path of development of the State and not stand in the way of the aspirations of people, who want to see him play a much a larger political role at the national level so that the country as a whole benefits from the kind of efficient administration he has given Gujarat.

8. Modi enjoys the unqualified support of large sections of the Gujarat population and is increasingly admired for his drive and administrative acumen in other parts of the country too by people who can by no means be called Hindutva ideologues. People, who look up to him and want him to increasingly play a pan-Indian role, are nationalists and as much secular in their outlook and beliefs as the so-called secularists whose main preoccupation has become stopping Modi at every stage. They are concerned over the slow rate of development, over the aggravating internal security situation and over India lagging behind China. They feel that the type of governance and leadership that Modi has provided to the people of Gujarat needs to be tried out in other parts of India too, but these so-called secular elements are not prepared to let Modi play his due role for the development of the country.

9. The unexpected success of the Anna Hazare movement in the initial stages of the battle against corruption was made possible by the assertion of youth power in support of his movement. There is a need for a similar assertion of youth power in support of the development model as experimented with in Gujarat by Modi and for its spread to other parts of India. The Stop Modi Movement by these elements has to be stopped and rolled back. Only youth power can do it. ( 15-4-11)